The Exiles: A Close Shave
by Kiva Taliana
Summary: My little band are back!  The exiles have a run in with an old enemy, which naturally lands Arthur in a spot of bother, and a cage.
1. Chapter 1

**I'm having a bit of trouble sticking with my long term stories at the moment, so this one will be short, three chapters maximum, just to keep my brain going. And I've missed my little Exiles, so I thought I would go back to them for a bit. **

Merlin, Jonas and Robert went into the guardhouse, having discovered that was the rest of their group's location in the small town they were staying in. It wasn't meant to be a long stop but since Arthur, Rupert and Gareth had failed to meet them it had turned out to be a day longer.

"We should be able to get back into the lodgings for another night," Jonas mused.

"If there has been trouble, the guard may not want us to stay," Robert reasoned.

"And if there has been trouble, best to get Arthur out of town, just in case there are any patrols passing. They might recognise him," Merlin murmured as they went through the door.

They found Malek, the farmer they had been helping out recently and had travelled to the town with, talking to the guard. He turned as they walked in.

"I've been trying to explain to them, it wouldn't have been your friends fault."

"They caused a fight in the tavern," the guard announced stubbornly. "I know you said they were helping you Malek, but they're strangers, we don't know them."

"Yes I know that, they offered to escort us into town because of the robberies that have occurred recently," Malek said, the old man trying to be a placid as possible. One glance told the knights and Merlin it was probably best course of action, they took that lead and simply waited, letting Malek defend them.

"So they know how to fight?" the guard concluded, eyeing the swords on Jonas' and Robert's belts. Merlin gave his best harmless smile. He was unarmed, and unassuming looking. The guard didn't look impressed, but one glance at Malek seemed to help him make a decision. He turned back to Merlin and the others.

"If you can pay their fine and leave before dusk, then I'll release them. It's two gold coins each."

Jonas sighed but nodded. "Fine."

The guard relaxed at the easy conclusion. Malek gave the three of them an apologetic shrug. Merlin gave another smile.

"We can always head out of town and wait for you if you want us to travel back with you tomorrow. I'm sorry you ended up getting stuck for another day," he said to the old man. He would probably feel better knowing that. The old man nodded, and Merlin turned and ran to catch up with Jonas and Rupert, who had followed the guard to the cells further into the building. Merlin skidded to a halt and gasped as he looked into the cage where their friends were housed.

Gareth and Rupert were a little battered, but intact, Merlin scanned them and realised the injuries were probably superficial. Both of them looked sheepish and worried. And as for the remaining member of their troop.

Arthur was conspicuous by his absence.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

"Come on sunshine!" A voice called loudly, it was accompanied by a clanging sound.

Arthur groaned, his head was pounding, and he automatically reached up to rub it, flinching as he found a tender spot on his temple and something cold smacked against his cheek. He opened his eyes, flinching as the red rays of the dying sun blinded him. Squinting his eyes he swallowed heavily, the rocking motion he was enduring making him feel a little sick, or was that due to the blow to his head.

"Oi, pretty boy!"

There was another clang, Arthur risked opening his eyes again, his gaze fixing on the manacle around his wrist. The sight made him jerk in shock, looking around, registering the bars of the cage he was in. One that appeared mildly familiar.

"He's awake boss!" the voice yelled. Arthur turned in the direction of the call, frowning as he recognised one of the men who had started the fight in the tavern. Arthur looked around again, he was propped against the bars of the cage, his wrists locked in the manacles that were attached by chains to the bars. Arthur yanked on them, looking around in shock. The cart stopped and the man driving hopped down moving to the side of the cage, to get a better look at Arthur. Arthur's stomach plummeted into his boots, flopping over a few times on the way down, just for good measure.

"Halig," Arthur stated flatly.

The bounty hunter gave a mocking bow. "Sire."

"Let me out of here," Arthur demanded. Halig straightened up and started to chuckle. The two men with him laughed as well, more as if they were just joining in rather than understanding the joke. Halig looked back up at Arthur.

"After all the trouble we went through to get you in there. No. The only moment I am going to let you out is when we are in the presence of King Uther. I dare say I will be well rewarded for bringing his errant son home."

Arthur jerked on the chains again, although it knew it to be hopeless. He glared down at the bounty hunter and lashed out quickly trying to make a grab for him. Halig stepped back, moving clear of the attack. One of his goons grabbed Arthur's arm, trapping it and twisting painfully. Arthur gasped, trying to get free. The man only stopped as Halig tapped him lightly with the club he was holding.

"Careful. Uther will not be pleased if his son is delivered back to him in anything less than peak condition."

Arthur blinked back the tears of pain that had risen and he looked around. He wasn't getting out of the cage, or the chains. He took a deep breath to calm himself, so he could think rationally. The others had to know what was going on. The only way he was getting out of this was if he was rescued.

It would be a week of travelling, if not longer considering the slow gait of the transport, to get to Camelot. He had time. Halig eyed him carefully and then turned, scrambling back up onto the seat at the front of the cart, one of the men walked next to the cage eyeing Arthur with amusement, the other climbed up and sat next to Halig as he urged the horses on. Arthur lurched in the back, sitting down and trying to relax, while eyeing the locks on the shackles.

The others would be right behind him, Arthur assured himself. They'd get him out of this mess. Merlin would get him out of this mess.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

The five of them were riding silently, following the road out of town, having established which road Halig had taken, and confirming he had an unconscious, blond prisoner locked in the back. They had been silent ever since Gareth and Rupert explained what happened, and Gareth had, before he had been knocked out, spotted the bounty hunter in the bar.

No one but Merlin was going to break the tense silence as they rode out of town, just as dusk fell. Not while the storm clouds were brewing behind his eyes. None of them would speak to Merlin, until he had spoken first and probably given Gareth and Rupert the dressing down they knew was coming.

Over the last few weeks they had been teasing Merlin mercilessly, as they had helped Malek with shearing his sheep flock. The old man had been unable to do much, his hands crippled with arthritis. His son was the only one able to work. Robert had grown up on his father's lands, where many people had kept sheep and Robert had learnt the skills required, so he had offered to help and train the others to assist.

Merlin had proved incapable of even catching, let alone turning and pinning a sheep for shearing. In the end he had been relegated to helping Malek's wife and his sturdy, plump (although some of the plumpness was eight months of pregnancy,) daughter-in-law spin and weave the wool.

It had turned out quite well. They had two new blankets and several sheets of material that could be turned into clothes since the daughter-in-law had also taken it upon herself to improve Merlin's sewing skills.

The knights had spent their time teasing Merlin, in their usual good-hearted way, reminding Merlin, as he endured it, that he was very much the youngster of the group, who often got babied by them. Except on occasions like this, when Merlin became something else entirely.

He took his responsibility for Arthur's safety very seriously. Merlin, the sorcerer with a great destiny, could be a very different character indeed. That personality was currently brewing under his usually placid exterior. They didn't have to wait very long for the storm of Merlin's anger to peak, if nothing else, they didn't have the time.

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Merlin bellowed, as they trotted their horses into the woods. The knights all jumped, not just because Merlin shouted but also he simultaneously conjured a light ball to fight the encroaching darkness.

"It was Arthur's idea," Gareth said.

"Let me guess, he wanted to measure the mood of the people," Merlin rumbled. Gareth looked embarrassed. Rupert found his horse's mane very interesting.

"Sorry," Rupert said.

Merlin spluttered. "Why the hell didn't you stop him?"

"He's the prince," Gareth said, hardly comprehending the idea of not obeying Arthur.

"He's also a prat!" Merlin snapped.

"To be fair, we had been around the town for three days now. None of us could have really expected to find anyone who knew Arthur in such a remote market town," Jonas said.

Merlin snorted, it made his horse jump and he pulled the mare to a halt. She paused and the knights jerked to a stop. Shifting his leg against her side Merlin got the mare to spin round so he could face the knights. She did so merrily, snuffling her nose against Arthur's riderless gelding, who happily snuffled back before pulling forward in Jonas's grip and starting to groom her neck.

"We can't risk it!" Merlin told them. "It's all very well on remote farms and outlying villages, I told you it was a bad idea to stay to long. We could have waited for Malek in the forest. Now we have had to abandon them. I shouldn't have left Arthur. This wouldn't have happened if I was there."

Not a single one of the knights disputed that. Rupert looked like he was counting every hair on the horse's neck. Merlin blinked as he looked at them, temper dissipating as he realised they were all waiting for him to think of something.

"They're only a day ahead," he said.

"And moving slower," Jonas added. "We should be able to catch them up by tomorrow."

"If I can keep the light glowing we can travel tonight," Merlin said.

"At least until you get tired," Robert said. "You can't ride if you have to put too much energy into it."

"If we get to that someone can hold me in the saddle," Merlin ordered. Jonas nodded. "And you need to make sure you lot start telling Arthur what he can and can't do. I'll tell him so!"

"Halig isn't going to hurt him, all he'll do is take him back to Uther, and he's not going to hurt Arthur."

Merlin sighed heavily, pulling his mare away from the gelding. She gave her own little sigh.

"I think there is a difference between Arthur returning in his own time under his own terms, and being forcibly taken back in a bounty hunter's cage."

"Which is a lesson Arthur is probably learning," Jonas said.


	2. Chapter 2

Arthur was starting to learn that lesson. As darkness started to fall Halig lit the torches and attached them to brackets at the front of the cage and the man who had been walking, took another and walked in front of the cart. The prince watched the proceedings and realised, they had no intention of stopping unless necessary. The man sat next to Halig had gone to sleep and would presumably wake up and take over when it was time to change shifts. They could move at a steady relentless pace, which would bring down the time it took to reach Camelot. Probably not halve it, they would still have to rest the horses on occasion, but it was possible it could take only four or five days to reach the castle. Not a good scenario.

After that Arthur spent some time, pulling and testing the chains, until the man walking had obeyed a signal from Halig and lashed out through the bars with a short whip. Arthur snarled as it snapped across his back. He spun round, glaring at the man outside the cage, who gave him a feral grin in return.

"Stop making so much noise then."

"Give him something to eat," Halig grunted, nudging the other man who jerked away. He passed the reins over to him and pulled out a package, handing it to his comrade with the whip. He pulled out some bread, and cheese and tossed them at Arthur. They landed in his lap, they were fresh from the market in town. Arthur guessed Halig had stopped to pick up supplies and had just got lucky, seeing him in the tavern.

Halig settled back, bracing himself against the bars, folding his arms and stretching his feet out, looking like he was going to settle down to rest.

"Keep your eyes peeled, his little friends will no doubt be trying to find him."

"We should have just killed them at the tavern."

"Don't be ridiculous," Halig grunted. "That would have held us up with the authorities there, and we would have had to waste time explaining ourselves. One of them might have caught on to who the little prince actually was."

Arthur felt like kicking him, but instead he started to eat. It was the most sensible thing he could do, starving on principle wouldn't help him in the long run. Halig shifted on the seat and turned to glare at Arthur.

"I presume your little sorcerer servant is with you? Your father has got quite a price on his head. We'll see if he catches up, I can take his head back with me."

"He will catch up," Arthur assured him. "And then you'll have to take on him and four knights."

That didn't sound entirely impressive, but Arthur knew it was. Halig smirked and leant towards Arthur.

"While making sure they keep you safe at the same time. I think we have leverage."

"I think they'll manage," Arthur snarled. "Merlin had no problem saving Freya from you."

"Only for her to die by your sword. How did he feel about that?"

Arthur often wondered. He knew what had happened, but Merlin had rebuffed Arthur's attempts to find out his feelings on the subject. There was still one point he could bring up.

"Merlin's still with me, isn't he?"

"Not at the moment, can't manage too well without him can you. Caught out in a tavern brawl, not very impressive for Prince Arthur of Camelot is it."

"You started the brawl on purpose, or at least your goons did."

"Perfect distraction, a few extra coins to the tavern keeper and hey presto, they started it. Earliest they will be released is in the morning. We'll have some time on them by then."

"You've still got to get to Camelot," Arthur reasoned.

"All we need to do is get you as far as the kingdom's boarder, then it will be fine."

"You still have to get me to the citadel," Arthur said. Halig grinned at him. Arthur pulled back a little as the man's foul breath hit him.

"All we need to do is find a patrol, I'm sure they would be very willing to escort us back."

"They won't let you keep me in a cage," Arthur said.

"I think I can persuade them that for security, you really should stay in there, until they can get you to your father. I'm fairly certain no one will want to take the risk in case of losing you. Then your servant and four knights should have a little more to take on."

With that Halig turned around, indicating that the conversation was over. Arthur thought it was. Halig had proved his point, and a very valid one. Camelot's boarders were always carefully patrolled, and the roads monitored. There was a good chance Halig could get the attention of some of the soldiers and knights, and there was also a very good chance they would keep him contained. They would certainly be apologetic about it, probably quite horrified, but between keeping him with them, or risk having to tell his father they had lost him, they would probably go with the cage.

Arthur contemplated the thought, calculating which gate they might go through, how many people might see him. Taken through the citadel like a common criminal, or an unfortunate druid, Arthur had seen many of them. He could understand Merlin's reasoning, even for releasing Freya. Merlin hadn't known she was a danger at the time, and then she had just been an unfortunate victim.

It was not a pleasant thought returning to Camelot, and Arthur wouldn't have believed he was capable of thinking that. He took a deep, steadying breath. They had to get to that point, he reassured himself. The others could move faster, they were on horseback, and they could even travel at night. It was something they had done a few times, with Merlin lighting the way.

But that also left Merlin drained. He would have to be up to a fight to get him out. They might have to stop to let Merlin rest, and what if they did have to wait for Gareth and Rupert to be released.

Arthur shook his head, Merlin wouldn't wait. As soon as he knew, he'd be after him. Unless he wouldn't find out until Gareth and Rupert could get out. What if they were locked up for longer than a day? Arthur's mind started to fill with increasingly panicked thoughts, and he forced himself to take another calming breath.

It was fine, he told himself, Merlin would find out, Merlin would move the heavens to try and get to him. That was the only thing Arthur needed to know.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

"We should have caught them by now!" Merlin snapped.

They pushed on as soon as it grew light, running the horses, taking the roads towards Camelot, they had stopped in a couple of the villages, asking for information. Both times the route Halig had taken had been confirmed. He was heading directly towards Camelot, with a long enough stop in one village to negotiate an exchange of horses. The villages didn't argue with the bulky bounty hunter, or his companions. They rode out with a sturdy, strong gelding, leaving the tired out pony behind.

Now they paused in the forest, while the sun moved over to the west. It was mid-afternoon, there was no way Halig could have travelled as far as they had.

"Yes," Jonas agreed. Rupert dismounted and crouched down, prodding the ground, and some of the mud in a small puddle.

"What are you doing?" Merlin snapped at him. Rupert looked up, a trace of nerves in his gaze but he answered calmly.

"Looking at the tracks, Halig's cart has wheels rimmed with metal, and they are reinforced with bolts to carry the weight of the cage. Since the ground has been quite dry recently, it's probably one of the few carts that will leave tracks. And they are distinctive."

"And?" Jonas asked.

"I can't see the tracks here, it looks like he didn't come this way."

"But he had to have done!" Merlin yelled, stress seeping into his voice. "Which other road could he have taken?"

"Merlin calm down," Jonas said. Merlin glared at him.

"How can I calm down, we're getting close to the boarder, it's going to be harder to get to Arthur if he's on Uther's territory. Halig won't make any effort to avoid the patrols."

"More than likely he'll look for one," Gareth said, ducking his head as Merlin glared at him.

"Isn't there something you can do, a search spell or anything like that?" Jonas asked Merlin.

The question jolted Merlin out of his temper. He bit his lower lip, the façade changing as he suddenly looked vulnerable and worried. His brows creased into a frown and he thought.

"I could try something with one of Arthur's possessions, and see if I can conjure something that I can send to him, so we can track him. I'm not sure though."

All of them blinked. This was the person who could summon a dragon and make their armour insubstantial and he wasn't even sure if he could search out Arthur.

"I think you probably can," Robert said. "You're so connected with Arthur you won't be able to help it once you start."

"Maybe, we need to find somewhere to try it. Perhaps I could do it while we're still moving," Merlin pondered.

Rupert turned his head and stood up. The others looked around as round the corner of the track a horse and cart lumbered along.

"On the other hand, we could try asking first," Rupert said. "Excuse me!" he waved his arm. The man on the cart didn't slow his horse, instead he loosened the reins in his left hand and put his right on the hilt of the sword by his side. There was a flicker of movement as a child scurried to the back of the cart, hiding under the cover. The man eyed them warily. He was forced to pull to a halt, since the knights were blocking the path.

"We haven't got anything of value," the man warned.

"Sorry," Merlin said. "We just wanted to ask if a cart passed you, going the other way. A bounty hunter."

The man's face hardened, and he eyed the group in front of him. Merlin winced. It wasn't going to be easy. No one would want to get involved in the situation. One look at Halig and his goons would make sure of that.

"I haven't seen anyone."

"Please, this is important," Merlin begged. He was starting to worry, he wanted to find Arthur. And then yell at him, extensively.

"I said, I haven't seen anyone," the man snarled, his grip tightening on the hilt.

"They must have gone another way," Robert said. "Let's try…"

"They might have taken the other track," a woman's voice announced.

"Valena!" the man hissed at the woman as she popped her head out from the cart. She gave him a stern look.

"I think if they were intending to rob us and ravish me, they would have done so by now," she announced. There was a giggle from the back of the cart. Valena turned her head. "Hush. And I'm fairly certain bandits don't shout out 'excuse me' either."

"Other track?" Merlin asked. "We didn't see one."

"You have to know it coming from the direction you did," Valena said. "It's a little way back but the track has over grown a bit, but it evens out later on. More rough going though, but manageable. He may have gone that way. If you head straight through the woods, you should meet the track before nightfall, and there's a small stopping place just past that."

The woman paused and peered around for a moment, trying to assess her position.

"At least I think so."

The five of them looked around at each other before the knights nodded at her and turned their horses. Merlin gave a sigh of relief and smiled at the woman.

"Thank you," he said sounding, to Valena, immensely grateful. Merlin turned and trotted the mare after the others, as they picked their way through the trees. He heard the man complaining at her.

"Honestly, Valena you should be more careful."

"Oh, don't be so untrusting, that poor little boy looked so worried."

Merlin smirked in resignation at the reference, and then spurred his horse on as he heard her add.

"I'm sure I've seen him before."

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Arthur had panicked, at some point during the day, when Halig had suddenly seemed to leave the road and head off into the woods. The cart lurched over a bump and rocked violently. Arthur grabbed onto the nearby bars to steady himself as the heavy vehicle lumbered down the incline. Arthur had a vision of the whole thing just pitching over.

None of his captors seemed very concerned. The man driving held the reins tightly, steering the horse carefully. Arthur stuck his head out of the cage, the bars were wide enough to allow him to and he looked down at the ground. Much too late he spotted a tree root, and as the wheel ran over it he jerked upwards cracking his head against the bar above him. Halig lashed out with the whip he was holding. Arthur recoiled back, rubbing his head and glaring at the bounty hunter.

"Wouldn't want you to get hurt would we?" Halig said.

Arthur glared at him. "Where are we going?" He was slammed around the cage again and he was forced to grab hold of the chains to keep himself steady, until he could anchor his hands on the bars.

"A little detour, the track will even out in a while, it's less known that the other roads, since it passes over the boarder."

Halig sounded smug as he talked. Arthur looked around. He didn't know about this. He hadn't travelled through Alined's kingdom that often and he had always used the main road. Arthur had no idea about this, which meant that Merlin and the others would have no idea either; which was probably why Halig was using it.

And Arthur discovered that although Halig wanted him getting to Camelot in good condition, that didn't rule out bruising. Although the track improved, and carts obviously used it on occasion, the deep ruts were not even. The driver, after a while struggling to stay in the seat, got down and tying up the reins just led the horse along the track. Arthur still got bounced around the cage. In the end he just wrapped an arm around one of the bars, pressed himself as close as he could and tried to relax his body into the uneven rhythm.

His arm ached, his body was roughly jolted but since there was nothing very serious about it he didn't moan, he just looked around, trying to find any signs of when they passed the boarder of Camelot. It wasn't something he knew about, which meant that none of the patrols did.

"Don't you think it's a bad idea to take me this way?" Arthur asked, trying to prevent his teeth from clanking as he talked.

"Why's that?" Halig asked.

"I've never known this way into the kingdom before, when I get back, I'll have to tell my father, and the patrols will take a greater interest."

Halig smirked in amusement. "I'm sure they will."

Arthur frowned, but Halig just walked away from him, and the journey carried on. They eventually paused in a small clearing. The horse was panting and heaving, making the cart rock with each breath the poor beast took. They were going to have to stop, and Arthur watched the proceedings as the men set up, lighting torches and a fire. They were pausing for a meal and again Arthur didn't see the point of fighting that. He ate what was offered and as a water skin was passed through he took it and drank, he had been doing so every time it was offered it to him.

After taking several deep swallows his paused and as he gave a light cough he blinked. Arthur could feel himself swaying and he jumped as the container fell through his fingers and dropped into the straw. Arthur tried to pick it up, blinking slowly, grappling as the sight swam before his eyes. He jerked as a hand flashed into his vision and the water skin was removed. Arthur looked up and then slumped, banging his shoulder against the bars. His head would have connected as well, but a well placed hand protected him and he was guided down as he slumped onto the floor of the cage.

He tried to flinch and struggle, but his limbs just wouldn't co-operate. In contrast his mind was alert, running with scenarios, and wondering what the hell had been done to him. He tried to lift his hand but it seemed to weigh so much and it flopped back down into the straw. Arthur felt hands on him, turning his head and his eyes met Halig's, as they regarded him carefully.

"I do apologise Sire, but I think it's best for now, we keep you docile."


	3. Chapter 3

**Last chapter, and now my mind is working again, I am going back to the longer stories, and will be able to get back to that. **

The cart wasn't moving, they were resting for the moment. Arthur had felt the horse being unhitched from the cart. The track might have been a secret but it was harder going, pulling a cart as heavy as Halig's. They only had one animal to rely on. As far as Arthur could work out they would stay as long as it took for the horse to recover, then they would carry on.

Arthur tried to calm the rising panic, and he didn't bother trying to fight the drug in his system. He could still move, and it wasn't rendering him unconscious. There was just a powerful feeling of lethargy, when he tried to move his limbs were heavy and uncoordinated. Arthur guessed that if he tried to get up, he wouldn't get further than his knees. If he stood up, he'd fall. So he didn't attempt it.

When, and he used that word sternly, the others caught up with him, he would need what energy he had then. So he let the drug work its way into his system. Since he didn't know how long the affects would last, it might be possible that he would be better co-ordinated in an hour or so. He needed to be able to move. Most of the fight to free him would be down to the others, especially Merlin. He had released Freya from the cage, so Merlin would be able to handle it again. There was only three people guarding him, the four knights could handle that fight.

As long as they didn't make it to Camelot, and find a patrol, then Arthur knew he was fine. It was another day until they would reach the boarder, and they would be back on the main path by then. The knights would realise that they were ahead of them, and would realise that Halig had somehow avoided them. Merlin might even be able to track him, he could do so many other things it was hard to imagine Merlin not being able to perform any task he wanted. Except keeping a sword in his hand, Arthur thought to himself with amusement. But he now knew Merlin wasn't defenceless by a long shot.

He listened to the sounds of the three men moving around. They were feeding and watering the horse, as well as themselves. Tilted his head and watched them carefully. The three of them were sat together, clearly having some kind of intense conference. Halig was leading the discussion, issuing instructions. The two goons nodded, and commented on occasion. They were certainly planning something. Arthur didn't like the thought of that, he strained to listen to what was being said, but they were out of his hearing range.

Worry started to stir in the pit of his stomach. If they were planning something they didn't want him to hear, then it had to be bad, and probably involved the others. Arthur's first assumption, his gut instinct, was the correct one. Merlin.

Halig certainly didn't like him. Merlin had made a fool of him over the druid girl, and he had said to Arthur Merlin was worth just as much money as Arthur was. His father would be more than pleased if Halig returned him alive, and Merlin dead. Arthur's breath hitched, there was no way to warn Merlin that it was a trap.

Taking a deep breath, Arthur forced himself to move, worry fuelling his movements. If they were setting something up to trap Merlin, then Arthur couldn't wait. He had to act, he told himself resolutely, as he tried to sit up, and then slumped back down. His head felt like a ton weight, and he just couldn't co-ordinate his limbs. Halig heard the sounds of his movement and looked up.

"Get the horse hitched up again," he ordered the two men. They obeyed without question. Arthur's worry went up a notch as Halig moved over to him, gazing at him through the bars of the cage. He lent his forearm on one of the bars and smirked at Arthur.

"Won't be long until you're home again."

Arthur gave a heavy breath but he couldn't form any words. Halig chuckled and turned away. Arthur felt the slight movement as the horse was re-hitched and the animal stirred restlessly. The men were breaking camp quickly, Arthur listened to the sounds, but didn't lift his head to try and look. But his head rolled to the side as the heard the call from within the forest. The sharp bark of a fox rang out through the trees. Arthur knew it, he recognised the tone immediately. It was Gareth. The call rang out again, each yip echoing around the woods, Arthur blinked. They were moving into position around him. Their likely approach plan would be two each side, with Merlin taking position with one of the pairs.

From the other side, a reply came as the call of a cookoo filtered through. That was Robert, close enough that he probably had Arthur in his line of sight. Arthur again struggled to move, but didn't put too much effort in. If one of them could see him, probably all of them could by now, then he needed to convey the fact that he was unable to help. He wouldn't be quick enough to do anything of use.

He most certainly wasn't as a hand latched onto his hair. Pain ripped through his scalp as whoever had hold of him yanked him towards the side of the cage. Tears rushed his eyes, but he couldn't yelp; the best he managed was a moan. Halig's face came into view and Arthur felt the cold steel of a blade press against his neck. Arthur looked up, forcing himself to focus and Halig grinned down at him.

"Do you think I'm stupid?"

It was probably a good thing that Arthur couldn't answer that question, but he gave a slight snort that conveyed humour. Halig pressed the knife in harder. Arthur felt like pointing out that the bounty hunter wouldn't get anything if he was dead, but clearly the man had considered that point.

"I don't think it will do your case any good if I take his body home and tell Uther I couldn't save him from you."

"He won't believe that," Arthur struggled to say, and then he grunted as his hair was yanked again.

"Your little prince here, thinks Uther won't believe it. I don't think you can guarantee that. He thinks you're all traitors! And do you really want to take the risk."

No, they didn't, they wouldn't, Arthur thought. He remained unsurprised as Arthur saw movement out of the corner of his eye. Jonas and Gareth came from one side. Rupert and Robert walked out from the other direction. Merlin was with them, Arthur guessed, as he wasn't by Jonas. He discovered that he wasn't by the others either as Halig asked.

"And where's the little sorcerer?"

The four knights kept their eyes on the scene before them. The bars were wide enough that Halig had pulled Arthur's head through and keeping a tight grip of him, left the prince vulnerable. None of them gave away Merlin's presence. Halig smiled and looked around, he nodded at the nearest man, who took hold of Arthur's hair and gripped the knife. Arthur stayed still, he shifted, looking like he was putting up a weak fight. All the knights registered the signal to stay as they were, until Merlin did something. Halig stepped forward and scanned the area, heading decisively towards a large tree as there was a scuffle from behind it.

He hauled Merlin out, propping him up as the boy staggered. Halig dragged Merlin by the collar, with Merlin practically on all fours.

"Don't like my new security then?" Halig asked him, laughing. "The lock repels magic, I had some especially made."

Merlin shook his head and sagged against Halig's legs. His eyes seemed confused and disorientated. Arthur turned and looked at him, and again thought, that didn't seem like Merlin.

What the hell did they do now? Arthur thought. And then Merlin looked up, and just briefly met his eyes.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Merlin had felt the power recoil the moment he tried to blast the lock. He had thought it would be distraction enough, even with a knife at Arthur's throat. Halig wouldn't do that even as a very last resort. Arthur dead was worth nothing to him. Merlin knew that the rest of them would give in the moment Arthur seemed in danger. Protecting him was their job, and they were used to taking orders. Merlin was a little different.

He followed Arthur's commands, to wash clothes, muck out stables and many other things. When it came to the crunch, Merlin had a different view. Halig was bluffing. He would not dare to take Arthur's corpse back to Camelot, and he certainly couldn't spin any lie about the knights killing him.

Merlin knew the man wanted him. All four men that could fight were disarmed and he should have been felled by the lock. Merlin admitted if he had put his power to it, the strength of the backlash might have hurt a bit, but he had felt the power. He pushed against it, just to see what would happen and if Halig knew when he would strike he might have got him.

But he hadn't. Halig didn't know about magic. Not enough to protect himself from Merlin. Merlin did what was expected, he played almost dead, and slumped down against the tree, making noise. He wasn't surprised when Halig himself came and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and dragged him out. Merlin stayed limp, trying to keep to his hands and knees. Arthur still joked about Merlin being able to walk on his knees, now it proved useful. Merlin allowed himself to be dragged to the centre of the clearing, and he looked around carefully.

The sense of the magic had been strong, radiating out from the lock. It was so bad, and so badly performed, that Merlin hadn't been able to hone it down beyond the cage, until he got close enough. He allowed his natural senses to spread out, and really, really, tried not to smirk.

Then he was shaken violently.

"Thought you could get the better of me did you?"

"I think I did," Merlin said. Halig shook him again, but Merlin's eyes stayed level, meeting Arthur's and the message was conveyed, but it had to get to the others. Arthur took a breath, pulled as much of his strength together as he could and reached out. He grabbed the man holding him and yanked him. Arthur didn't have all his strength, but the man lurched forward and his head cracked against one of the heavy bars. Then Arthur grabbed for the man's wrist, trying to ease it away. It probably didn't matter if he couldn't by now, people were moving, and then all jumped as Merlin provided a distraction.

Halig had got someone to treat his locks with magic. The door was secure, if you looked at the lock. On closer inspection Merlin could narrow the source of the magic down. It was deeply concentrated on the lock that held the cage closed. The door could be opened that way, but Merlin went for the weak link.

He made everyone jump as the hinges blasted apart, and the whirlwind ripped the door away from the cage. Air swirled around the doorway, buffeting everyone in the clearing. Splinters few out, and sparks rippled from the cage as Merlin's magic clashed with another person's. He didn't know who they were, and he didn't care. They were an amateur compared to him.

The horse jumped and trotted forward and as Arthur felt that he held onto the goon's wrist, pushing it against the bar of the cage. He was dragged a few paces before the goon slumped down, knocked out by Gareth. Rupert took the other man. Halig flew across the clearing, crashing against a tree and slumping down to the floor, sprawling out on the ground.

Merlin was up on his feet, running towards the cage and Arthur. As Halig slowly stirred Jonas efficiently smacked him on the head and the bounty hunter dropped like a stone.

"Arthur, Arthur?" Merlin said. He took a grip of Arthur's shoulders pulling his head back through the cage and wincing as it bumped a little. He needn't have bothered worrying as Arthur looked up with bleary eyes and a cocky grin and said.

"Oh, I am so glad to see you."

"You too," Merlin said with relief. "Let's get out of here."

Arthur tried to sit up, wavering a little, so Merlin was forced to support him. Arthur's weight sagged against his, and they both collapsed in a heap.

"Merlin!" Arthur objected.

"Not my fault you're so heavy!" Merlin snapped.

"Don't you start implying I'm fat!"

"Jonas, you'll have to carry him. We can put him over his saddle."

"Oh no, you're not," Arthur protested, his words starting to slur a little as the drug in his system subdued the sudden rush of adrenaline the fight had caused. Jonas hesitated, glancing at Merlin, who looked back at him with an implacable expression.

"Just do it."

Jonas obeyed, between them they manhandled a complaining Arthur to the door and eased him into a sitting position, before tipping him over Jonas' shoulder.

"Hey!" Arthur mumbled in protest, huffing as Jonas shifted the prince's weight to steady himself. "This is undignified."

"Worse than being taken back to Camelot in chains?" Merlin snapped at him.

"Sorry, Sire," Jonas said.

"You're not putting me over my horse like this."

"Yes, we are, I've done it before," Merlin snapped.

Huh?" Arthur mumbled in confusion.

"What do we do with these three?" Gareth asked. The three men were slumped in various places in the clearing. Merlin glared at them without much concern, although his conscience would not allow him to do anything brutal to them.

"Just leave them, we'll be long gone by the time they rouse. Release the horse, let's leave them without any transport, just in case."

"I'll bring him with me. Malek might like him," Robert said, and the three of them went to do as Merlin asked, as he followed Jonas and the rather disgruntled prince.

"Shut up, Arthur!" Merlin snapped.

"If I were you," Jonas murmured to the man he was carrying. "I'd do as you were told."

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

"Merlin?"

He looked up at Arthur's voice, balancing the firewood he had collected in his arms, and scooping up a few more branches. Merlin did feel a flash of amusement as Arthur also scooped up a few branches.

"What?" Merlin asked, straightening up.

"Jonas sent me to help you, and said something about it being my turn to get yelled at."

It looked like Arthur was bracing himself for that, clearly having heard how angry Merlin had been that the entire situation had happened. Arthur wasn't, by the look of it, about to attempt to come up with any excuses or dismissals over Merlin's anger.

"What did you think you were doing?" Merlin snapped at him. "You are supposed to be being careful."

"It wasn't expected that we would find someone who would know me."

"For god's sake, Arthur! We have to expect it, which means you can't go randomly walking into places without making sure it is safe first, or keeping me with you when you do!"

"Gareth and Rupert were with me. And they didn't say anything."

"Of course they wouldn't. They are used to taking orders from you. To them you are still the Crown Prince of Camelot. You're not!"

"I am!" Arthur yelled back, his voice rising in stress. "Of course I am!"

"Well, maybe, but if someone captures you and takes you back in chains, how is that going to look? For heavens sake, think about it! You can't wander around doing what you like, we have to be careful!"

"I always had to be, Merlin!" Arthur yelled back.

"Not so I've noticed."

"You can't keep hold of a sword for more than thirty seconds. I can defend myself."

"I can do it better! I have been doing!" Merlin bellowed at him, he glared at Arthur, who suddenly looked a little timid. It was such an odd expression that Merlin couldn't help but notice it.

"I know," Arthur said. "But I can't not be capable of looking after myself. Why didn't they just say something?"

"Because they won't Arthur," Merlin said calmly, his temper deflating. "You're the one that gives them orders, they will follow whatever you say. They need to start saying things, like I do."

"No one says things like you do Merlin. You're the only one, I don't know why."

"I think that pattern was set the day we first met," Merlin said. "And I know you can't help it, but you bully people into what you want to do. Gwen said it."

"Said what?"

"That you were a bully."

Arthur's face dropped, he looked horrified. "Gwen thinks that."

"Not now, obviously," Merlin said. "But before she got to know you. I don't suppose you can help it, but you have to listen when we tell you it's not safe. They have to start telling you."

Arthur nodded, looking miserable. "The best plan is to go further north, for a while at least, out of Camelot's range."

"You don't want to."

"Of course I don't want to. Without me there, Camelot is in danger. I need to be close by in case the kingdom, in case my father, needs me."

"Arthur, if we need to get there, we have good transport."

"Stories take time to travel Merlin, by the time we hear it could be too late."

Merlin stepped forward. He couldn't stay mad at Arthur, all he had been doing in the tavern was trying to get information. He needed to know about his kingdom, any stories, or rumours of what was happening. It was like an obsession, or a drug, and the withdrawl was hard on him. Merlin felt the same, Camelot had become his home, and he was worried about Gaius.

He didn't think that Uther would really hurt him, nor Morgana. They both had Gaius hostage, it would do neither of them any good to hurt the physician, and they could both use him against Merlin. Most of the time, Merlin tried not to think about it. He had committed himself to protecting Arthur, so he had better start doing that a little better.

"I know. I know we need to try and find out what is happening but we can't stay too close, we have to move further away, just for a while."

"How long is a while?" Arthur asked.

"I don't know, but I don't like the idea of going to far either. But my priority is you, so we have to do it."

That ended the conversation and they went back to camp, ate and then Robert finally asked.

"So, we're all okay now?"

"Yes," Merlin said. "Although, you lot have to start telling him, if you think something is not a good idea, and you need to listen."

Arthur nodded, Merlin sighed.

"We'll just put this down to being a bit of a close shave."

Robert groaned, most of them rolled their eyes and Arthur gave Merlin a light shove.

"What?" Merlin asked.

"That is not something you say to people who have spent the last two weeks shearing sheep," Robert announced.

"Oh no," Merlin said, and then he yelped as Arthur wrapped an arm around his neck, locking Merlin against his side and then proceeded to rub his knuckles on Merlin's head.

"Hey, no! Stop it! Aaahh!"

Merlin yelped as Jonas joined in, digging into Merlin's ribs and locating the point where he knew Merlin was ticklish.

"Stop it, stop it, stop it!" Merlin yelped, trying not to giggle as Jonas tickled him. Neither person relented and the other three laughed as they watched. Merlin eventually managed to kick Jonas, so he fell back, and he wriggled free of Arthur, probably because Arthur let him. Merlin glared at him, his face now flushed and hair ruffled. Arthur grinned, so did the knights.

"You are horrible people; I honestly don't know why I bother!"

"I don't know," Arthur drawled. "Is it something about destiny?"

Merlin scowled.

"And honey cakes?" Robert asked, waving the batch he had just made.

Merlin sat down and pouted before answering.

"Yeah, okay, you got me there."

"Good," Arthur said, with a smirk and a ruffle of Merlin's hair.


End file.
